College can be incredibly stressful.

Students keep busy with schoolwork, clubs and social events, and some students at the University still choose to take on a job in addition to their already demanding schedules.

For students considering taking a job, there are a variety of options on campus besides retail or fast food that can work with a busy schedule. 

Faith Foster, freshman in DGS, started her job at Espresso Royale about three weeks ago. She said that she wanted to get a job to help keep her busy, while also making money. 

Meredith French, Illini Inn bartender and senior in Business, said, “I have some free time, so I thought it would be a productive use of my time. The Illini Inn is a great place to work, so it is perfect for me. I am able to receive money for doing something that I enjoy.” 

The Office of Student Financial Aid has a virtual job board that is accessible through its website and allows students to search for available jobs on- and off-campus with specific preferences like location, hourly rates and hours per week.  

However, if students are having trouble finding a job that suits them, they should check college departments for job listings, said Cormac Lucas, sophomore in LAS.

“The ARC is always a good place to start; residence halls are always a good place to start … I would check out whatever department they’re in or whatever college or school they’re in.  Sometimes they’ll have postings on their website,” Lucas said.

Lucas is part of the preparatory staff for the molecular and cellular biology laboratory.

Whether the job is through the University, such as in a dining hall or residence hall, or not affiliated with the school, such as a bartender or barista, business managers seem to be understanding of students’ busy and inconsistent schedules.  

“It’s super flexible. You just have to put in a request and the manager …  she’ll usually just work everything out for you,” Foster said.

Students also agreed that although it can be challenging to manage their time at first, it is definitely doable.

Daniel Reyes, sophomore in LAS, said he thinks of time management as “finding a new rhythm.”

Reyes worked as a host in the FAR dining hall last semester.

“Working at the dining hall made me do a lot more homework on Mondays and Wednesdays, so that way Tuesdays and Thursdays I would just essentially do nothing,” Reyes said. 

Reyes said when he first started his position, it was stressful managing his time well, but after a few weeks he started to learn his routine and adjusted to his new lifestyle.

“Once you have a job, I would just say to be careful that you don’t bite off more than you can chew because it can get easily overwhelming,” Foster said. 

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